Please welcome Melina and Laura to the blog today- their newest book
Crave was released Sept 21 2010. You can find my review
here. They have graciously agreed to answer some interview questions for the blog.
--Can you give us a brief description of Crave in your own words?
We've discovered that it's hard to describe this book briefly!
Shay has been sick with a rare blood disorder for her whole life. Finally her
stepfather, who's also her doctor, begins giving her transfusions of a new
blood...blood that gives Shay visions of the life of a man named Gabriel. It's
not long before Shay realizes that Gabriel is a vampire--and that the visions
are more than they seem.
--How did you get the idea for the story?
We've always loved vampires, and we wanted to do a twist on the
typical vampire romance. We started with the idea of transfusions as a
different way to "drink" blood. It's usually a vampire feeding from a
human, but in our case, it's the opposite.
--How was it co-writing a story? Did you each do a certain element of the
story?
Well, we work together a lot, and we've done so for many years. So
for us, the only difference between co-writing and writing alone is that it's
more fun working together! The way we do it is that we spend a bunch of time at
the beginning just talking through the plot and the characters. By the time we
sit down to write, we have a complete outline of each chapter and we've
discussed what the characters' personalities and voices are like in great
detail. Then we split the outline in half and one of us writes the first half
while the other writes the second. Afterwards, we both go through the whole
thing several times and edit it. If any big questions come up, we discuss them
and fix them together. When we're done, we barely know who wrote what anymore.
--Which character would you most/least like to have dinner with?
From CRAVE?
LJB: Hmm. I would like to
have dinner with Sam, because he's just a good guy and has lived for hundreds
of years and still managed to hold on to his optimistic outlook.
MM: My first thought was
Ernst, just because he's the oldest and has seen the most. But it would just end with one of us storming
out of the restaurant (I don't cook!) or dead.
I think I'm going to go with Sam too!
--What are some of your favorite books? Do you still have much time to read?
LJB: I have little kids, so my reading time is severely limited!
My all-time favorite books are The Lord
of the Rings, and I re-read them every five years or so. Otherwise, lately
I've been reading a lot of biographies. The world is so crazy these days that I
find it comforting to read true-life stories about how, well, the world has
always been crazy!
MM: I read all the time,
and I try to convince myself it's work related and so it's fine to be reading
when I really should be writing. I'm even
in two book clubs. For one of them, I
just read The Selected Works of T.S.
Spivet by Reif Larsen, and was blown away by it. I'm also a fan of John
Green, Stephen King, and Margaret Atwood.
--If a fairy godmother told you your life could be like a favorite book for 24
hours, which book would you pick and why?
LJB: Pride and Prejudice,
because I identify so closely with Elizabeth
that I feel as if we think the same way. And she gets to go marry Mr. Darcy,
the original tall, dark, and handsome hero. So what could be bad?
MM: I think I'd like to
live in Anne of Green Gables world
for a day. Okay, Gilbert Blythe is no
Mr. Darcy, but he's not bad. And I'd
like to hang out with Anne.
--Do you need anything to write (music, coffee, etc)? Are there
any songs on the Crave "playlist-" songs that inspired you or that
were playing while you wrote?
LJB: Honestly, whenever I try to write with music on in the
background, I end up sitting there listening to music and not writing at all.
What I've been doing to get in the mood while writing the sequel to Crave is
that I put on music during my "study breaks"--while I'm eating, or
stretching my legs. I've been listening to old Radiohead, PJ Harvey, and the
soundtrack from Baz Luhrmann's Romeo & Juliet.
MM: I don't write with
music on either. I either get too caught
up in it (like Laura), or I get so caught up in writing that I don't hear it at
all. I go over to Starbucks and drink
iced green tea when I'm feeling stuck, as much for a change of scene than
anything.
--Could you give us any teasers from the sequel? There will be one right??
Yes! It's called ARISE. Um, teasers... You'll get to know Gabriel's family better,
and some people will die!
--If you could have any superpower what would you choose?
LJB: Does being immortal count? If not, I'd probably choose to
fly.
MM: I'd like the power to
grant wishes.
--Besides writing, what do you like to do in your free time?
LJB: I never write in my free time! My poor wrists couldn't take
it. I'm a big TV watcher. And I spend way too much time online reading recaps
and discussions of shows. Why do I read recaps of episodes I've already seen?
It makes no sense, but I do it anyway.
MM: I read recaps of shows
I've already watched too. I actually
never read recaps of the ones I haven't seen.
I also go to movies a ton. It's a
rare movie I have no interest in seeing.
--Is there anything else you want to add or say to your readers?
LJB: Thanks for all the support for CRAVE!
MM: Don't hate us for the
cliffhanger. And thanks!
Thank you!!
Here is their
website where you can find out more about them and their books!
Amber Frost, here's my review
Haven by Cook, here's my review
Wither by Destefano, here's my review
Accused by Kate Kaynak, my review
Half Blood by Jennifter Armentrout, my review
